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Galveston’s wharf reminds me of San Francisco’s wharf. We went to see the Elissa, an old masted sail boat with a crew that sails her regularly. They are beautiful, no doubt about it. When we got there, you can pay to board her and walk around.

If you’ve never done it, it’s worth the price, $6 and $8 dollars, senior/ student and adult prices. We visited one in New Bedford, MA. and watched the crew prepare for sail and make a staged water rescue in 2010. I visited a tall ship in Boston Harbor and another in San Francisco, so we passed and just took pictures. The seafood restaurants smelled tempting. We watched a guy unload gunny sacks filled with oysters. It was way to early for us to eat.

Then I saw something I knew would make my youngest son drool. Beautiful Doug Fir, from old growth trees. 6…

Galveston has the natural attractions of beaches, fishing, sand and sun. But, from the early 1900’s, it has been a tourist mecca and nicknamed the Coney Island of the South. At one time the biggest city in Texas and the second biggest port in the nation, second only to New York.

In 1877 swimsuits had to cover from the knee to the neck, but by the 1920’s a Bathing Girl Review hosted by the Galveston Beach Association was so popular it eventually led to the Miss Universe Contest.

I was surprised to learn that Galveston was the major entry port for immigration before Ellis Island opened in 1822. And after, except during the Civil War, Galveston was still the major port for immigrants up through the 1940’s.

During prohibition, people from everywhere flocked to Galveston, nicknamed a “Free State” meaning booze, women, gambling, you name it. The town was full…

Yesterday we drove the motorhome the about 55 miles from Freeport to Galveston, Texas.

Recently we have been slowly moving north and as we follow the Texas Gulf of Mexico Coast…east. The reason is because on February 6th, we have reservations to enter Sam Houston Jones State Park at Lake Charles, Louisiana for a one-week stay while we enjoy Mardi Gras!

As shown in this Google Earth image below, we ran directly along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico for 40 miles. V marks our current location at VFW Post #8248. Galveston is on an island of 56.000+ population with even more people in the city getting ready for Mardi Gras. Real estate becomes very expensive so there are only two clubs…the Elks with no parking lot and the American Legion with a very small parking lot…so we had to move off-island to find a place to park…

The word Rickshaw originates from the Japanese word jinrikisha/human, riki/power, sha/vehicle, which literally means human-powered vehicle.

Rickshaws were first seen in Japan around 1868, at the beginning of the Meiji Restoration. They soon became a popular mode of transportation since they were faster than the previously used palanquins and human labor was considerably cheaper than the use of horses.

The identity of the inventor remains uncertain. Some American sources give the American blacksmith Albert Tolman, who is said to have invented the rickshaw around 1848 in Worcester, Massachusetts, for a missionary. Others claim that Jonathan Scobie, an American missionary to Japan, invented the rickshaw around 1869 to transport his invalid wife through the streets of Yokohama. Other scholars think it was Izumi Yosuke, a restaurateur in Tokyo in 1869.

Still others say the rickshaw was designed by an American Baptist minister in 1888. This is undoubtedly incorrect…

Yesterday, when I got up, the moon was shining through a bank of clouds. The mist off the river gave the park lighting a misty yellow glow.

The whole campgrounds looked surreal and beautiful.

Then, the sun struggled through the mist in pink and purple hues.

The WINs were already finished with their hugs and mugs gathering by the time I was finished with my therapy exercises I do each morning.

Paul, Garth and the two pats decided to visit Bay City.

Arlene handed out some persimmons she found. They are very small and of an oriental type I’d never seen before. Pat, on the left, will be parting from the group after Mardi Gras New Orleans, but will rejoin them again before they head west. We all hugged goodbye and bid them a fond farewell.